Church of Saints Simon and Jude

Church of Saints Simon and Jude in Brloh is a Baroque parish church standing on a hillside above the center of Brloh, a village in the Český Krumlov district of South Bohemia, Czech Republic. Together with the neighboring rectory and cemetery, the church forms a picturesque complex protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic.

How did the current church come to be?

The first church in Brloh, dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene, was built between 1310 and 1347 under the patronage of Peter I of Rosenberg, a member of the powerful Rosenberg family that controlled much of southern Bohemia at the time. From that original structure, a Gothic tower and parts of the outer walls on the western side survived. Between 1697 and 1704, the architect Canevalle incorporated these remains into a new church, rededicated to Saints Simon and Jude.

What does the church look like today?

Despite its Baroque reconstruction, the church retains a distinctly Gothic appearance. It is a single-nave building with a three-sided presbytery and a tall gable roof. The Gothic tower, inherited from the 14th-century structure, still dominates the surrounding landscape and remains visible from several points in the village and the neighboring hills. Together with the adjoining rectory and cemetery, the church forms a compact historical ensemble typical of small parishes in the South Bohemian Pošumaví foothills.

Where exactly is the church located?

The building stands on the slope of a hill overlooking the center of Brloh, a village in the Český Krumlov district of the South Bohemian Region. Its coordinates are 48.92963 N, 14.221562 E.

Why is this church worth a visit?

The church bridges two building periods — a 14th-century Gothic tower and a Baroque body added at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries — making it an interesting example of the gradual reconstruction typical of religious architecture in the region. Its hillside position above the village makes it a natural landmark for travelers passing through Brloh and the wider Pošumaví area, a region known for its dense network of hiking and cycling trails. The church complex, together with its cemetery and rectory, fits into the landscape of small historic settlements scattered across the hillsides of South Bohemia.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the church in Brloh dedicated to? The church is dedicated to Saints Simon and Jude, apostles of Christ.

Is the current building the first church on this site? No. The first church, dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene, was built between 1310 and 1347. The present church, constructed between 1697 and 1704, reused the Gothic tower and part of the walls of that earlier structure.

Who commissioned the original church? Peter I of Rosenberg, a member of the Rosenberg family, one of the most powerful noble houses of medieval Bohemia.

Is the church a protected monument? Yes, it is protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic.

What does the church's architecture look like? It is a single-nave building with a three-sided presbytery and a tall gable roof, retaining a Gothic character despite the Baroque reconstruction carried out at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries.

What else stands next to the church? The rectory and cemetery sit directly beside it, together forming a compact sacred complex on the hillside above the village.